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Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 29, 2009

Dissecting the cave on canvas

One of the greatest mysteries of art is what exactly the flat two-dimensional surface of the canvas is, and what it is for. The mundane answer, of course, is that it's a convenient rectangular surface on which to place and display aesthetically pleasing colors and lines. But this does not really explain...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
May 29, 2009

Classical music lovers get set for Matsumoto

"Sending out high-quality Western classical music from Japan" was the goal for renowned cellist and conductor Hideo Saito (1902-74), who studied in Germany. In 1955, he cofounded the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo, where he devoted the latter half of his life to music education and taught many...
Reader Mail
May 28, 2009

Different take on universities

Regarding Dipak Basu's May 17 letter, "Higher education going to seed": I beg to disagree with the economics professor in Nagasaki. He should remember that there is a difference between national and private universities in Japan. I taught at a private university for 34 years and found so much extra money...
COMMENTARY
May 28, 2009

West resembles Mrs. Jellyby

There is a character in the works of Charles Dickens who is increasingly coming to symbolize the spirit of the age in which we now live.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHO'S WHO
May 26, 2009

Waseda academic confident country's charms are to be had by the open-minded

Paul Snowden came to Japan 40 years ago — thinking that his visit here would only last for two years, after which he would go back to his native England and settle down as a grammar school teacher.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 26, 2009

Ex-Israeli soldier to speak on Mideast problem

Noam Chayut, a former Israeli soldier and member of the organization Breaking the Silence, will speak in Tokyo this weekend in coordination with journalist Toshikuni Doi's documentary "Chinmoku wo Yaburu" ("Breaking the Silence"), a film that sheds light on the situation in Palestine through extensive...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 23, 2009

Reality check from the top of the world

"I suppose I just couldn't sit down and listen to it anymore. I couldn't go to the pub and just keep complaining about it and not actually go do something about it," says Gavin Dixon.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
May 22, 2009

Renowned New Juilliard Ensemble set to make Japan debut

Suntory Hall will next month welcome students from New York's renowned Juilliard School of Music as part of the hall's Rainbow 21 educational program. Held annually since 2004, the program aims to provide Japanese students with a chance to experience the whole process of concert-making, from planning,...
JAPAN
May 22, 2009

Lawmakers question 'saibanin' system

A group of nonpartisan lawmakers gathered Thursday, the first day of the new lay judge system, to call for a moratorium on the new criminal trial system that every political party voted unanimously to institute five years ago.
EDITORIALS
May 20, 2009

Guns fall silent in Sri Lanka

It's over. Asia's longest running civil war has ended. After a vicious offensive by the Sri Lankan government, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have laid down their weapons. This is a long-sought end to a savage and bloody conflict. The test now is whether the Sri Lankan government will address...
COMMENTARY / World
May 20, 2009

Poverty: the winner in war on global warming

PRAGUE — I am surprised at how so many people nowadays in Europe, the United States, and elsewhere have come to support policies underpinned by hysteria over global warming, particularly cap-and-trade legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and subsidies for "green" energy sources. I am convinced...
COMMENTARY
May 19, 2009

Parliament under attack

LONDON — The Mother of Parliaments at Westminster is in deep trouble. Housed in its venerable Thames-side palace — an instantly recognized icon of democracy around the world — it is today filled with anxious legislators who feel a mixture of anger, apprehension and bewilderment.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 17, 2009

Hatoyama elected head of DPJ

Democratic Party of Japan chose Yukio Hatoyama as its new president Saturday by a relatively large margin over Katsuya Okada, who was the more popular candidate among the public in opinion polls.
JAPAN
May 17, 2009

Kinder, gentler society pledged

For newly elected Democratic Party of Japan President Yukio Hatoyama, it's all about the love.
SOCCER / PREMIER REPORT
May 16, 2009

Despite double talk, Tevez likely to stay with Man United

LONDON — It is not always easy being a football reporter. We are sometimes accused of not telling the truth, but knowing who to believe can be more difficult than digging out a world exclusive.
JAPAN / CITIZEN JUSTICE
May 16, 2009

Like lay judges, court interpreter system still in nascency

Last in a series
JAPAN
May 16, 2009

Bill would allow organ harvesting from children with parental OK

As pressure mounts to revise the controversial organ transplant law, lawmakers across party lines submitted a fresh bill Friday to the Diet on top of the three bills that are already being deliberated.
JAPAN
May 13, 2009

No progress on isles dispute a victory for Moscow

Lack of progress Tuesday on the territorial dispute will go down as yet another win for Moscow as Russia continues to expand its presence on the islands it holds off Hokkaido.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CITIZEN JUSTICE
May 13, 2009

Early jury system tests fell short

KYOTO — The first trials under the new lay judge system are expected to take place sometime after May 21 and speculation in mounting over how ordinary people will handle this new obligation.
COMMENTARY
May 12, 2009

Northern Territories dispute lives on self-righteous deadlock

Visits to Japan by Soviet and Russian leaders over the years have done little to break the Northern Territories deadlock — Moscow's refusal of Tokyo's demand for two large islands at the southern end of the Kuril Island chain occupied by Soviet troops in 1945, as a condition for a peace treaty with...

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past